2001 Casa Girelli, Canaletto, Montepulciano D'Abruzzo ($7.99 Local Supermarket). Alcohol level 13%. Another lovely wine and value from this region. Black berries and cherries on the nose and upfront. Very nice complex body, and a satisfying finish. Unfortunately son-in-law loved it! Matched with still more fresh tomato & basil sauce this time with tiny Penne, sweet Italian sausages with fennel, and sliced tomatoes. And our book entitled "Too Many Tomatoes" is still in storage!

I was only trying to point out that the wine went with warm weather dishes (the fresh tomato sauce in the first post), and well as with heavier dishes as the weather turned cooler. Sorry for the confusion.

Picked up another bottle at my nearest NH Package Store tonight, as my choices were it or about 20 Chianties. There were a few Merlots, Cabs, etc. from Italy (not the best places thou). Asked why they only had three or four reds, with half of them from French grapes, when there are about 450 different Italian reds; they said they didn't know of any others! The Canaletto went fine with Wild Mushroom Liguini, in Marinara; Sweet Italian Chicken sausages that tasted like the peppers they were filled with, and a nice salad in vinaigrette.

Love dem Montes. They're slowly invading my Rhone section (biggest section) of my cellar. They have everything we look for in an everyday, humble red without the fancy Park Avenue price (12 to 18 bucks) of a southern Rhone <LOL>.
Please don't tell everyone about them. I may wind up having to pay a fair price for them if they get popular.

An '02 Caneletto last night ($8.99 NH Liq Store). Alcohol level: 13%. It is still the same ole Monty. All of them seem to come out of the same vat every year. Not much variation except between brands. If I had a choice it would always be the Masciarelli over this one.

Matched it with deli Lasagne. The food was noticeably more acidic than the wine, taking away from the overall experience.

The last time we were in Portland we picked up a couple of more '03s at Micucci's for $7.99 ea. Popped a bottle tonight with Rigatoni in Pink Vodka Sauce, Italian chicken sausages, and salad.
Pink Vodka Sauce is something we found in the Mohawk Valley area in New York. This one came from cooks.com:

Cook Rigatoni for 14 minutes and drain. In the same pot melt the butter and add Vodka and red pepper flakes; simmering for two minutes. Add tomatoes and cream and simmer an additional five minutes, adding salt at end. Return drained Rigatoni to pot with cheese, and simmer on very low heat for ten minutes or so until pasta absorbes most of the sauce. Serve.

You can serve half of the sauce with a half pound of pasta and half the cheese as we did tonight; saving the remaining 1 1/2 cups of sauce and half a box of pasta for another night.

Popped an '05 Caneletto last night with meatballs and linguini. It is still $8.99 locally, and 13% alcohol. It is a nice everyday drinker, but more acidic than the Masciarelli which we prefer at same price point.